Nearly 30% of U.S. Gulf of Mexico crude oil production and 41% of its natural gas production remained offline on Saturday following Hurricane Francine, the U.S. offshore energy regulator said.

Meteorologists are tracking Hurricane Francine as it makes its way northeast through the western Gulf of Mexico. The storm is expected to make landfall as a category 2 storm with winds in excess of 96 mph somewhere along Louisiana's southwestern coastline on Wednesday.

Oil prices rose over 2% on Thursday as producers assessed the impact on output in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico after Hurricane Francine tore through offshore oil-producing areas before being downgraded to a tropical storm.

Oil prices rose on Friday and were on track to record their first weekly gain in a month after oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico were halted due to Hurricane Francine. Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world’s oil,

About 39% of crude oil production and 49% of natural gas output in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico were shut on Wednesday as hurricane Francine barreled toward the Louisiana coast, the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said.